FYI! FMLA intermittence

HMcDade1 · December 2015

Hey gals. I just wanted to shed some light on something. Today I called my benefits department and they told me you can't set up true FMLA/Short Term disability benefits until 2 months before your due date- what you can do in the mean time is file a claim for FMLA intermittence. Per the claims adjuster you have to have told your boss before you file and you have to give information on your doctor so they can verify your pregnancy status- but the most important thing here is that it covers you to call out of work for morning sickness/appointments/etc once it's filed.

Something to look into and ask your employers about if you're having a really hard first trimester- had I set this up sooner my call out for fainting would have been covered and wouldn't have counted towards my yearly call out max.

Very happy to have this set up now ! Hope this post helps someone !!

katbrian052108 · December 2015

Just an FYI, I believe this will cut into your time after the baby is born. I could be wrong, but definitely double check!

MamaBish · December 2015

katbrian052108 said:
Just an FYI, I believe this will cut into your time after the baby is born. I could be wrong, but definitely double check!

This is true! You only have a finite amount of fmla time that covers a 2 year span once activated. So if you activated today and you are only eligible for 8 or 12 weeks (different size organizations have different limits), you will only have that amount of time for anything that happens until this date 2 years from now.

HMcDade1 · December 2015

Because this is a separate claim it doesn't cut into the time, unless I use it, per the woman from the company that I talked to today. If I start using the leave and take a call out day it will deduct one day from the final total post maternity leave, but only if I use the time not if I just have it set up as a precaution. Maybe it's different for others but she said this will cover you for complications/sickness prior to delivery and then a separate claim will be filed for maternity leave etc.

To each their own- but I didn't realize this existed. As a nurse that can be fired if I call out more than 3 days in a year this is a huge insurance policy for me.

Edited for clarity

megstervt · December 2015

The claim for maternity leave might be 6 or 8 weeks depending on the type of birth and your company policy. Many times companies have this plus FMLA which is typically unpaid and really about protecting your employment. Women often use the disability and FMLA to get up to 12 weeks of protected leave. Each company will have highly individual policies regarding if leaves run separately or at the same time, type of pay available, if time off can be used or is required, etc etc. Because it can be SO different between employers it's important not to assume one persons experience will be yours.

All that being said, FMLA can be used as individual days so what you were told in that regard is likely true. I would double check that if you use say, a week, if that will "count against" you after birth if you are planning to use this leave for after birth and need the job protection.

MamaBish · December 2015

HMcDade1 said:
Because this is a separate claim it doesn't cut into the time, unless I use it, per the woman from the company that I talked to today. If I start using the leave and take a call out day it will deduct one day from the final total post maternity leave, but only if I use the time not if I just have it set up as a precaution. Maybe it's different for others but she said this will cover you for complications/sickness prior to delivery and then a separate claim will be filed for maternity leave etc.

To each their own- but I didn't realize this existed. As a nurse that can be fired if I call out more than 3 days in a year this is a huge insurance policy for me.

Edited for clarity

Absolutely use it. You are correct. We aren't saying not to activate it, just to be cautious about using the time only if you really need to.

this is a very long story so I will try to make this short:

*trigger warning- past loss*

I had a stillborn dd in March of this year. I used up all 3.5 weeks of my vacation time recovering. Then, in May, my mother was in a terrible car accident that left her in the ICU for a month. I had to be there to make medical decisions and help so I had to activate fmla. I used up about 3 weeks of it. So now, I will only get a max of 5 weeks for maternity leave next year. If anything else happens before May of 2017 where I need to take an extended time off, I'm SOL.

It's just something to keep in mind, that's all. It's a great thing that should definitely be used if needed

HMcDade1 · December 2015

Thanks @megstervt ! Yeah I don't want people assuming it will be the same - contact your benefits people for sure. But for someone like me who works 3 days a week and has a max capacity of call outs this protects me right now.

My work has all sorts of rules. Maternity leave is considered 6-8 weeks depending on delivery type and then pays 60% for that time and the rest is supplemented by personal time off banks of hours etc etc. Short term disability and FMLA covers us up to twelve weeks after delivery without being able to be fired etc.

Check your work, check your rules. Just wanted to shed light on this in case someone else wanted to get more info.

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FYI! FMLA intermittence

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